hundreds of veterans are joining together to help victims from hurricane sandy. many residents are reeling from devastation and now these new volunteers are hoping their efforts will help communities struggle to rebuild. anna kooiman is joining us now from rockaways, new york. >> hey there. this volunteer effort is amazing. team "rubicon" has 500 volunteers, most veterans from iraq and afghanistan in the rockaways alone today. they got started about three years ago after the haiti earthquake and it helped dozens of disaster victims over the last three years. in place here in new york before super storm sandy even hit. i want to talk to a homeowner here. mary ann: when you say you rode out the storm, water actually came up to here, almost six feet of water. you've been living in this mess for almost three weeks now. >> yes, we have been. we've been living here. >> what does it mean to you to have these volunteers? you burst into tears as soon as you saw them. >> it's a god send because without them, i'm alone. i live alone here. without them, i would never be able